Box opener and pouring spout



May .11, 1943. 'N. C. STILWELL 2.318.899

BOX OPENER 5ND POURING SPOUT Filed Feb. 27, 1939 his v 1N VENTOR.

/Ve'/ c. Jaw/z Y A TTORNEYJJ I Patented May 11, 1943 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE BOX OPENER AND POURING SPOUT Neil C. Stilwell, Richmond, Ind. Application February 27, 1939, Serial No. 258,626 9 Claims. ((31. 221-23) The present application relates to a pouring spout, and specifically to a spout of the type which may be kept by a housewife and used on successive boxes of materials, not only to act as a pouring spout and closure, but also to constitute means for easily opening sealed containers of cardboard and the like.

The primary object of the invention is to provide a device which may be readily applied to a container formed of cardboard or the like and which, in the very act of application to the con tainer, will cut an opening in the container and will thereafter remain associated with the container, having a swinging connection therewith so that it may be moved into one position to act as a pouring spout, and to another position to act as a closure. A further object of the invention is to provide a device of the character described which shall be so constructed as to form a hinged tongue of the container material upon which the device will be hingedly connected to the container. A further object of the invention is to provide, in a device of the character described, means for readily, and substantially automatically, forming a connection between the device and such tongue, which will be sufiiciently secure to prevent accidental dislodgement of the device; and yet which will permit ready removal of the device from the container after the contents of the container have been used.

Further objects of the invention will appear as the description proceeds.

To the accomplishment of the above and related objects, my invention may be embodied in the forms illustrated in the accompanying drawing, attention being called to the fact, however, that the drawing is illustrative only, and that change may be made in the specific constructions illustrated and described, so long as the scope of the appended claims is not violated.

Fig. 1 is a section taken through one embodiment of my invention, associated with a fragment of a box;

Fig. 2 is a reduced isometric view of the same embodiment of the invention;

Fig. 3 is a reduced isometric view showing the same embodiment of the invention associated with a fragment of a box in pouring position;

Fig. 4 is an isometric view of a second embodiment of the invention;

Fig. 5 is a somewhat similar view of a third embodiment; and

Fig. 6 is a similar view of still another form of the invention.

Referring more particularly to Figs. 1, 2, and 3, it will be seen that the device ll illustrated therein comprises two spaced, substantially parallel blades I2 and I3 joined, at their upper ends, by a base I4. Since the blades I2 and Bare identical, only one will be described in detail.

Each blade terminates, at its end remote from the base I4, in a penetrating point l5 which is joined to one end I6 of the base I I by a blunt edge. Said blunt edge preferably comprises a short portion I8 substantially perpendicular to the base I6, a major portion I9 leading downwardly and forwardly toward the end I! of the base at a slight angle, and another short portion 20 leading downwardly and forwardly at a sharper angle to merge with the portion 2I of the opposite. edge of the blade in the point I5. Said portion 2I leads upwardly and forwardly at a slight angle and merges with the major portion 22 of the forward edge of the blade which leads upwardly and forwardly at a sharper angle to join with the base I4 at a point 23 short of the end I! of the base. The edge portion 22 is sharpened andpreferably serrated, as shown, the serrations being formed in any desired manner and being relatively low.

It will be seen that, if the points I5 of the blades I2 and I3 are placed upon a wall of a box I0 formed of cardboard or the like, and pressure is then applied to the base I4 in a direction substantially perpendicular to the surface of said base, the points I5 will readily penetrate the box Wall, and the portions 20 of the blunt edges of the blades will tend to move the sharpened portions 2I forwardly somewhat by a cam action to start to slice through the box wall. As'the points penetrate sufiiciently to bring the serrated edges 22 into engagement with the box wall, further movement of the device in a direction perpendicular to the base I4 will cause a slicing, sawing action of the edges 22 upon the box wall, as the blunt edges I9 further cam the entire device forwardly while the device moves downwardly, as viewed in Fig. 1.' Thus, the blades I2 and I3 will cut spaced substantially parallel slots 25 and 26 in the box, and the base I4 will ultimately be moved into contact with said box wall, engaging the portion of said wall between said slots.

Positioned between the end I6 of the base and the points 23 at which the edges 22 join the base I4, said base is formed'with a transverse slot 24 joining the planes of the said blades. In Figs. 1 and 2 I have illustrated a special cutter 21 having a root width substantially equal to the length of the slot 24. One blunt lateral edge 28 of said cutter is perpendicular to the root dimension thereof and merges with an inclined edge 29, in a sharp, penetrating point 30. If said cutter is now inserted in the slot 24 with its edge 28 in contact with one end of said slot, and is forced inwardly, the inclined edge 29 will slice through the material of the box wall to form a transverse cut 32 therein joining the slots formed by the blades I2 and I3, adjacent one end thereof. As is shown, the inclined edge 29 merges with a lateral edge.3I parallel with the edge 28sothat,

when the cutter 21 has been forced inwardly to the point where the transverse offset 33 thereof engages the base M, the portion of said cutter defined by the parallel edges 28 and 3| will have been projected beyond the free end of the tongue 34 formed in the box wall material by the joining slots produced by the blades l2 and l3 and the cutter 21. If, now, the cutter 21 is hinged about its offset 33, swinging in a clockwise direction as viewed in Fig. 1, the said tongue 34 will be entrapped between the cutter 21 and the base l4.

Each of the blades l2 and I3 is formed with a pair of spring tongues 35 projecting inwardly; and, when the cutter 21 is so swung into juxtaposition with the base l4, it is engaged by said tongues 35, whereby return movement of the said cutter is inhibited. Of course, such movement of the cutter 21 will swing the finger piece 36 thereof into engagement with the upper surface of the end I1 of the base M.

The device is now hung upon the tongue 34 which, of course, will swing rather readily about the line joining the bases of the slots 25 and 26, as shown in Fig. 3. The end H of the base I4 and the portion 36 of the cutter 21 form a convenient thumb piece whereby the whole device may be swung about that line into and from the position of Fig. 3.

As is clearly illustrated in Fig. 3, the perpendicular distance from the base M to the points |5 is greater than the length of the slots 25 and 26, as is the longitudinal dimension of the base l4, itself. Consequently, when the device is in the position of Fig. 3, the portions 2| of the leading edges of the blades l2 and I3 engage within the wall of the box l0 beyond the cut 32 to prevent the device from swinging in a counterclockwise direction beyond the position of Fig. 3; and when the device is swung to the position of Fig. 1, the portion H of the base engages the outer surface of the wall of the box I0 to prevent the device from swinging farther in a clockwise direction as viewed in Fig. 1.

In Fig. 3, the cutter 21 is not shown. It will be clear that the housewife may, if she prefers, use an ordinary kitchen knife to form the cut 32, thereby eliminating the use of the cutter 21. If a knife is so to be used, the housewife will rest the blunt edge of the knife against one end of the slot 24 and force the blade of the knife through the said slot. If the knife blade is not sufficiently wide to fill the slot transversely, she may force the blade, with a slicing movement, toward the opposite end of the slot 24 until the cut 32 has been completed. She may now remove the knife and, swinging the device slightly in a counter-clockwise direction from closed position, insert the knife through the slot 32, pulling the tongue 34 outwardly and, with her finger, pressing it closely into contact with the inner surface of the base l4, whereby the tongu 34 itself will be engaged by the fingers 35, to provide the desired connection between the device I and the said tongue 34.

In Fig. 4 I have illustrated a slight modification of the invention. The device 40, like the device comprises spaced blades 4| and 42 joined by a base 43, the blades 4| and 42 being identical with the blades l2 and I3. The base 43 is formed with a slot 44 like the slot 24; and terminates in a, finger piece 45 like the finger piece |1.

At its opposite ends, the base 43 is provided with a cross bar 46, which may preferably be made by folding back upon itself the material from which the base 43 is made; said cross bar terminating in wings 41 and 48 depressed into the plane of the base 43.

I have found, in practice, that occasionally when a device of the type illustrated in Figs. 1 to 3 inclusive is applied to a box made of relatively weak material, and particularly when it is applied to a wall which is materially wider than is the device H, the box material will tear rearwardly behind the end N5 of the spout. The provision of the wings 41 and 48 is for the purpose of preventing that tearing. Spreading rather widely beyond the sides of the device, those wings come into the region of support of the perpendicular walls of the box, and, feeling that support, tend to prevent the box material from tearing rearwardly.

In the embodiment of Fig. 4, I have also shown an alternative means for holding the tongue of box material to the inner surface of the base. A wing key 49 is secured to the inner surface of the base 43, being pivoted thereon as at 50. The wing is set in the position illustrated during cutting of the box and, after the tongue has been formed and has been pressed into contact with the inner surface of the base 43, the locking key may be turned 90 degrees to swing one end thereof beneath the free end of the tongue of box material, thereby securing the spout to the said tongue.

In Fig. 5 I have shown still another modification of the invention. The spout, indicated generally by the reference numeral 55 comprises parallel blades 56 and 51 similar to the blades l2 and |3, and joined by a base 58. In the embodiment of Fig. 5, I have not shown the serrations upon the parallel blades. While I find those serrations to be somewhat advantageous, I am of the opinion that they are not essential.

In this form of the invention, the end 59 of the base is laterally enlarged, and the slot in said end, indicated generally by the reference numeral 6|], is made up of angularly related portions 6| and 62 meeting at a substantially central point, and wing extensions 63 and 64 joining the portions BI and 62 with the slots cut by the blades 56 and 51. Any desired form of securing means may be used in connection with this form of the invention; but I have shown securing means similar to the elements 35 of Fig. 1.

In Fig. 6 I have illustrated a somewhat more expensive unit indicated generally by the reference numeral 10. This unit comprises blades 1| and 12 joined by a base 13, said base being provided with upwardly extending ears 14 and 15 mounting a hinge rod 16 upon which are swingably mounted ears 11 and 18 secured to a transversely positioned blade 19. Said blade 19 will assume the position illustrated in Fig 6 during the cutting operation; and its lower end is provided with pointed furcations 8|] and 8|, forming penetrating points bounded by slicing edges. It will be noted that the points and BI are located in a plane somewhat above the horizontal plane of the blades 1| and 12; whereby the blade 19 is prevented from coming into action until after the slots cut by the blades 1| and 12 have been well started. However, by the time the base 13 has been moved into contact with the box wall, the blade 19 will have formed a transverse cut joining the ends of the slots formed by the blades 1| and 12; so that a tongue,

free at one end, will have been completely formed.

The blade 19 is now swung in a clockwise direction, as viewed in Fig. 6, by manual manipulation of the finger piece 82, to move the lower end of said blade into juxtaposition to the base 13, the newly formed tongue of box material, of course, being entrapped between the blade 19 and the base 13. Securing means, such as the spring finger 83, are provided for inhibiting accidental return movement of the blade 19.

In the various forms of my invention disclosed in the present application, I have provided a simple and inexpensive appliance which may be readily associated with boxes formed of cardboard, or the like, thereby automatically opening the box, providing a closure for the box which will, under ordinary usage, remain associated with the box so long as may be desired, and at the same time providing a readily available pouring spout which may be used conveniently until the contents of the box has been exhausted. Thereafter, the appliance may be readily removed from that box and applied to another for similar use in connection therewith.

Of course, the device of the present application, when used in connection with boxes having interliners of paper or other material such as is sometimes used, the sharp blades will readily cut through those interliners, so that a tongue of liner material is formed at the same time that the tongue of box material is formed; and the tongue of liner material may either be caught by the holding means just as is the tongue of box material, or such tongue of liner material may be torn away, at the discretion of the user.

I claim as my invention:

1. A combination box opener and pouring spout comprising two side walls bounding a chute bottom, each side wall having an edge lying substantially in the plane of an end of said bottom and a serrated edge angularly related thereto and leading from said first edge to a point adjacent the opposite end of said bottom to form a penetrating point and a cutting edge, whereby pressure applied to said bottom substantially perpendicular thereto will force said side walls to cut parallel slots in a box wall.

2. A combination box opener and pouring spout comprising two spaced cutting blades joined by a base and adapted to be forced through a box wall to cut spaced slots therein, each of said blades terminating, at its end remote from said base, in a penetrating point lying in a plane perpendicular to said base and between the ends of said base and having a blunt edge leading from said point to an end of said base and a sharpened edge leading from said point to a position short of the other end of said base.

3. A combination box opener and pouring spout comprising two spaced cutting blades joined by a base and adapted to be forced through a box wall to cut spaced slots therein, each of said blades terminating, at its end remote from said base, in a penetrating point lying in a plane perpendicular to said base and between the ends of said base and having a blunt edge leading from said point to an end of said base and a sharpened edge leading from said point to a position short of the other end of said base, said base being formed with a slot connecting the planes of said blades at points between said first-mentioned base end and said positions at which said sharpened edges join said base.

4. A combination box opener and pouring spout comprising two spaced cutting blades penetrable simultaneously through a wall of a box, and a base joining said blades, said base being slotted to guide a further blade in cutting a slot in said box wall joining said first-mentioned slots adjacent one end thereof.

5. A combination box opener and pouring spout comprising two spaced cutting blades penetrable simultaneously through a wall of a box, a base joining said blades, a transverse slot in said base extending between said blades, and a removable blade insertable through said base slot, said lastnamed blade having a root width substantially equal to the length of said base slot and one lateral edge of said blade being perpendicular to its root width while the other lateral edge thereof is formed by a portion parallel to said first edge and a portion angularly joining said first-named portion with said first-named edge.

6. A combination box opener and pouring spout comprising two spaced cutting blades penetrable simultaneously through a wall of a box, a base joining said blades, a transverse slot in said base extending between said blades, and a removable pointed cutter insertable through said base slot and formed, adjacent its end opposite its point, with a transverse offset, whereby said cutter may hinge in said slot.

7. A combination box opener and pouring spout comprising two spaced cutting blades penetrable simultaneously through a wall of a box, a base joining said blades, a transverse slot in said base extending between said blades, and a removable pointed cutter insertable through said base slot and formed, adjacent its end opposite its point,

with a transverse oiTset, whereby said cutter may hinge in said slot, and means engageable with said cutter, when the latter is'hinged into juxtaposition to said base between said blades, tending to hold said cutter against return movement.

8. A combination box opener and pouring spout comprising two substantially parallel cutting blades insertable simultaneously through the wall of a box to cut spaced slots therein, a base connecting said blades, a transverse slot in said base extending between said blades, and a removable pointed cutter insertable through said base slot to form a cut in said box wall joining said spaced slots therein, said cutter being formed with a transverse ofiset, whereby said cutter may hinge in said base slot to entrap between said cutter and said base the tongue formed by said slots in said box wall.

9. A combination box opener and pouring spout comprising two substantially parallel cutting blades insertable simultaneously through the wall of a box to cut spaced slots therein, a base connecting said blades, a transverse slot in said base extending between said blades, and a removable pointed cutter insertable through said base slot to form a cut in said box wall joining said spaced slots therein, said cutter being formed with a transverse offset, whereby said cutter may hinge in said base slot to entrap between said cutter and said base the tongue formed by said slots in said box wall, and means engageable with said cutter, when the latter is hinged into juxtaposition to said base between said blades, tending to hold said cutter against return movement.

NEIL C. STILWELL. 

